Washing machines, dishwashers and microwave ovens are widely seen as modern saviours from a host of unwelcome domestic chores – but new figures show that, in hundreds of thousands of incidents each year, they can cause a major risk to people's lives, or even prove fatal.

Consumers in China, the world's second-largest economy, drove the country's white goods market to a new high in 2013, as they took advantage of a loosening of government policies designed to encourage them to buy more energy-efficient, but more expensive, appliances.

Microwave oven users have different expectations of their appliances. While some might expect it to play a part in creating gourmet-quality ingredients for a full three-course meal, others are delighted if it can simply produce the perfect popcorn.